Health

An overview of our work on Oklahoma health issues

Oklahoma’s health care system reflects the challenges of a rural, high-poverty state, and we rank among the unhealthiest states in the nation. OK Policy analyzes how federal and state health care policies affect all Oklahomans. We promote policies that will increase access to affordable health care, reduce the number of uninsured, and boost health outcomes.

Health Facts

Featured Articles and Reports

Oklahoma is in crisis. While need for mental health care climbs, Oklahomans overwhelmingly lack access to the care needed to address these sometimes preventable, always treatable conditions. This has serious consequences: untreated mental illness can mean increased risk for other health problems, incarceration, difficulty keeping a job and keeping up with financial responsibilities, and homelessness. More...

All children should be able to see a doctor or fill a prescription when they need to. After all, access to quality health care in childhood makes it more likely that a person will succeed and thrive throughout their life. But in Oklahoma, children are less likely to have access to health care than their More...

[Download full issue brief] [Download 2-page fact sheet] System is Far From ‘Broken’ and is Ready to Handle Expansion Accepting federal dollars to extend Medicaid would provide substantial economic benefits to Oklahoma, save the state millions of dollars that now go to cover the cost of caring for those without insurance, create new jobs in More...

Health Experts

Carly Putnam joined OK Policy in January of 2014. She previously worked as an OK Policy intern. A Kansas City native, Carly graduated from the University of Tulsa in December 2013 with a BA in Sociology and Women’s and Gender Studies. As a student, she was a participant in the National Education for Women (N.E.W.) Leadership Institute and interned with Planned Parenthood. She is graduate of the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits Nonprofit Management Certification Program, the Oklahoma Developmental Disabilities Council’s Partners in Policymaking program, and The Mine, a social entrepreneurship fellowship in Tulsa. She previously served as board president for United Campus Ministry at the University of Tulsa. At OK Policy, Carly supervises policy staff and conducts research focusing on health care and the safety net.

Lauren Turner joined Oklahoma Policy Institute in October 2018 as the mental health policy analyst and coordinator of the Mental Health Policy Fellowship. She is a native Tulsan who has spent the entirety of her career working in social services in Northeastern Oklahoma, including work in inpatient and outpatient mental health settings, the HIV/AIDS community, and anti-trafficking efforts in the Tulsa area. She was a research assistant and Knee Center for Strong Families Scholar at the University of Oklahoma. She received a B.S in Family and Human Services from John Brown University in 2010 and a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Oklahoma in 2016. She became a Licensed Master Social Worker in July 2016.